Penny the Pony Learns What It Means to Lead - A Children's Story

Penny the Pony Learns What It Means to Lead

A President’s Day Story About Courage, Character, and Doing What Is Right

Moral of the Story:

True leaders always do what is right, even when nobody is watching.
True leaders keep their promises and never stop trying.
True leaders help others and stand up when others fall down.
True leaders speak kindly and listen with respect.
True leaders are honest in every word they say.
True leaders work hard and never give up on their dreams.
True leaders care about others more than themselves.
True leaders inspire others by the way they live each day.

In a wide, peaceful meadow surrounded by tall oak trees lived a young pony named Penny.

Penny was small. Her legs were thin, and her mane never seemed to stay neat. While the other horses ran fast and strong, Penny often tripped over her own hooves.

Sometimes Penny felt like she did not belong.

One crisp winter morning, Penny noticed something new. Red, white, and blue ribbons were tied to the fence posts. Flags fluttered in the breeze. A large wooden sign stood at the entrance to the meadow.

It read: Happy Presidents’ Day

Penny tilted her head.

“What is Presidents’ Day?” she asked Oliver the old owl, who sat high above in the oak tree.

Oliver blinked his wise golden eyes.

“Presidents’ Day,” Oliver said gently, “is a day to remember great leaders. Leaders who helped others. Leaders who were brave. Leaders who did what was right, even when it was hard.”

Penny’s ears perked up.

“Were they the biggest and strongest?” Penny asked.

Oliver smiled.

“Some were tall,” he said. “Some were small. But what made them great was not their size. It was their character.”

Penny did not fully understand.

Later that morning, Penny walked along the frozen stream. Suddenly, she heard a cry.

“Help!”

It was Benny the Bunny. He had slipped on the ice and could not stand up.

Penny’s heart began to beat faster.

She was nervous. She was small. She was not strong.

But she remembered Oliver’s words.

Leaders help others.

Slowly and carefully, Penny stepped onto the slippery ice. Her legs trembled, but she did not stop.

She lowered herself beside Benny.

“You can lean on me,” Penny said softly.

Benny leaned against her, and together, step by step, Penny helped him reach the grass.

“You saved me,” Benny said with relief.

Penny smiled shyly.

“I just helped,” she said.

That afternoon, dark clouds rolled over the meadow. The wind howled loudly. A storm was coming.

The smaller animals began to panic.

“Where do we go?” cried Lucy the Lamb.

“We are scared!” squeaked Sammy the Squirrel.

Penny felt scared, too.

Very scared.

But then she remembered something else Oliver had said.

Leaders stand strong when others are afraid.

Penny walked to the center of the meadow.

“Follow me,” she called out.

Her voice was quiet, but steady.

She led the animals toward the large barn at the edge of the meadow. The doors were open, and inside was warm hay and safe shelter.

One by one, the animals followed Penny.

Soon, everyone was safe inside.

The storm roared outside, but inside the barn, there was calm.

“You helped all of us,” Lucy said.

“You showed us where to go,” Sammy added.

Penny looked down at her hooves.

“I was scared too,” she admitted.

Oliver, who had flown into the barn, landed beside her.

“The bravest leaders,” Oliver said, “are not those who feel no fear. They are those who act even when they are afraid.”

Penny thought about this.

She had helped Benny.
She had guided the animals.
She had stood up when it mattered.

Maybe leaders were not born.

Maybe leaders were made.

The next morning, the storm had passed. The sky was bright and blue. The ribbons still fluttered on the fence.

Oliver gathered the animals.

“Presidents’ Day reminds us,” he said, “that leadership lives inside each of us.”

He looked at Penny.

“Leadership is not about being the biggest,” Oliver said.
“It is about doing what is right.”

The animals all looked at Penny.

Penny felt warm inside.

She was still small.
Her mane was still messy.
Her legs still wobbled sometimes.

But Penny had learned something very important.

She could be a leader.

Not because of her size.
Not because of her strength.

But because of her heart.

And from that day on, Penny walked taller.

Not because she had grown bigger.

But because she had grown braver.

Moral of the Story Poem:

A leader helps when others fall,
A leader stands when fear feels tall.
A leader speaks with truth and care,
A leader shows that love is there.

A leader tries and does their best,
A leader lifts up all the rest.
A leader shines for all to see,
A leader is who you can be.

Discussion Questions:

1.     What did Penny do that showed she was a leader?

2.     Why is it important to help others, even when you feel scared?

3.     What is one way you can be a leader in your own life?